The Top 10 Most Quotable Geek Films

Wow, what a loaded topic. The Top Ten Most Quotable Geek Films… hmmm… to be included in my list, I’d have to be able to think of at least three quotes with little to no effort. I’m not sure I could keep the list to 10. Let’s find out.

The proposed list is a start, but I gotta disagree with Superman II – great film, decent quotes, but not quotable enough for distinction. I’d also need to remove Aliens, because, sadly, I can’t think of three lines quickly. Great flick, though, and I know it would be quotable if my memory wasn’t failing me.

Then I’d have to remove the ones I haven’t seen yet: Pulp Fiction, Army of Darkness (I have got to get around to that one), and Tombstone (is that really a geek film?). I’d replace those with A New Hope (Star Wars IV), Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Ghostbusters, and Caddyshack. So that leaves us with:

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

The Princess Bride

Star Wars IV: A New Hope

Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back

Blazing Saddles

Young Frankenstein

Caddyshack

Ghostbusters

Office Space

Airplane!

(Turns out I had to bump Die Hard, unfortunately. It got beat by sheer quantity of Airplane! quotes.)

Then there’s the “how can you leave these off” list:

The Blues Brothers

Real Genius

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Back to the Future

Spaceballs

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

Ernest Save Christmas

And the king of underappreciated quotable movies: UHF

See? I knew it would be next to impossible to keep it to 10. And those are just the ones with at least three “quick-access” quotes.

Okay, I know there are at least a few people out there reading this in an aggregator or on email. Today I’m asking you to click through and participate in the discussion. Leave a comment! Let me know your top ten quotable geek movies, or at least the ones I missed. Reorder my list. Tell me your favorite quotes – which line do you pull out the most often (clean it up, if necessary)?

Then we come to this crazy assertion that you haven’t seen Pulp Fiction or Army of Darkness. Ok seriously, is something wrong? Movie night at my house, call me.

Let me try to wet the appetite for Army of Darkness;
‘All-right you primitive screwheads, listen up. This is a BOOMSTICK!’ (two for the price of one)
‘Baby that’s just what we call pillow talk.’
‘Yeah, I said the words.’
‘Shop smart, Shop S-Mart.’
‘Good? Bad? I’m the guy with the gun.’
… and I could go on. The unique thing about AOD is not only is the movie highly geek quotable, but pratically every great quote comes from Bruce Campbell’s character. There is no doling of the quotes, or rationing great lines amongst the cast. It’s all about ‘Sam Ash, Housewares.’

I guess it’s not fair to pick on yout list without providing one of my own.

My List:
1) Office Space
2) Army of Darkness
3) Princess Pride
4) Serenity
5) O’ Brother Where Art Thou
– I know this isn’t generally considered a geek movie, but that’s not my problem. I’m a geek and I say it makes the list.
6) SW:Empire Strikes Back
7) SW: A New Hope
8) Airplane!
9) Raiders of the Lost Ark
10)300
– To be fair 300 isn’t released yet, but I’ve read the book and I’m confident the movie will be filled with great quotes that appeal to geeks.

Serenity: I really gave that one some thought. A couple quotes come to mind (one even rotates through my header here). Just didn’t think it was as strong a contender as the others. It should probably be on my alternates list.